Post-transcriptional gene silencing in a dynamic RNP world

MicroRNA (miRNA)-guided gene silencing is a key regulatory process in various organisms and linked to many human diseases. MiRNAs are processed from precursor molecules and associate with Argonaute proteins to repress the expression of complementary target mRNAs. Excellent work by numerous labs has contributed to a detailed understanding of the mechanisms of miRNA function. However, miRNA effects have mostly been analyzed and viewed as isolated events and their natural environment as part of complex RNA-protein particles (RNPs) is often neglected. RNA binding proteins (RBPs) regulate key enzymes of the miRNA processing machinery and furthermore RBPs or readers of RNA modifications may modulate miRNA activity on mRNAs. Such proteins may function similarly to miRNAs and add their own contributions to the overall expression level of a particular gene. Therefore, post-transcriptional gene regulation might be more the sum of individual regulatory events and should be viewed as part of a dynamic and complex RNP world.

Automated summary

MicroRNA (miRNA)-guided gene silencing is a crucial regulatory process in different organisms and its dysregulation is associated with various human diseases. While the mechanisms of miRNA function have been extensively studied, the natural environment of miRNA as part of RNA-protein particles (RNPs) is often overlooked. RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) and protein readers of RNA modifications can modulate miRNA activity and contribute to post-transcriptional gene regulation. Therefore, gene regulation should be viewed as a dynamic and complex RNP world rather than isolated events.